This study explored the relation between mother-infant coordinated interpersonal timing, an automated microanalytic measure of dyadic vocal coordination, and maternal sensitivity. Thirty-four mothers and their developmentally normal 4-month-old infants were audio recorded during a 20-minute laboratory vocal interaction session, which was later…

Two studies were conducted to examine (1) 1- to 3-day-old infants' imitation of their mothers, and (2) mothers' imitation of their newborn infants. For the infant imitation study, 30 mothers and their infants served as subjects. Two observers stood behind the mother to view the infant's face while the mother presented one of the following…

This study compared the reinforcement effects of imitation to the elicitation effects of noncontingent maternal vocal stimulation. Subjects were 17 three- to six-month-old infants and their mothers. Infants received three successive experimental conditions: contingent imitation B1, noncontingent elicitations, and contingent imitation B2. Under the…

Two-year-olds' reactions to strangers were related to ratings of their emotionality, sociability and activity and to ratings of parental love and control by both fathers and mothers. Each child received two sessions with strangers, one male and one female. Four times per session a stranger, in a friendly manner, approached each child as it sat in…

The formation of attachments is an important phenomenon occurring in the realm of socioemotional development. This study examined the impact of infant massage on infants' subsequent attachment security. Fifty-seven mother-infant dyads (48 dyads from Head Start, 9 from the community at large) were randomly assigned to a treatment or control group…

This study examined how change occurs in infant gestural communication. Five infants were videotaped once a week from 10 to 12 months and twice a week from 12 to 15 months during play sessions with their mothers in a laboratory playroom. These sessions consisted of 10 minutes of a structured play context in which infants were seated at a table at…

Reported are implications of the genesis and development of joint action between Spanish adults and their infants for early first language acquisition. Focusing on the naturally occurring context of the "give and take" game format, this investigation discloses the role of the interaction pattern in the language acquisition process,…

This study examined mother/child interactions during feedings for full-term, healthy premature, and sick premature newborns. Ten first-born infants in each of these categories were observed with their parents once in the hospital, twice at home, and once in the laboratory during the first 4 months of life. Observations focused on the position in…

In order to specify the factor structure and stability of infant and maternal behavior, mother/infant interaction was observed when infants were 12 and 24 months of age. Mothers and infants observed in dyadic interaction in a playroom during a 15-minute free play period represented a heterogeneous sample across gender, socioeconomic status, and…

This report is based on a longitudinal analysis of physical-contact interaction of mother-infant pairs throughout the first year of life. The sample consisted of 26 middle-class mother-infant pairs who were observed in their homes for four hours once every three weeks. During each visit, the observer made a running record of everything that…

Mothers' imitation of their infants during the first 3 days of life is examined in this study. Twenty-four newborn infants (12 males, 12 females) and their mothers participated in the study. On each of the first 3 days following delivery, mother-infant pairs were videotaped in a non-feeding interaction for approximately 5 minutes while the infants…

Sharing behaviors of infants who had experienced early separation through hospitalization from their mothers were compared to behaviors of infants who had experienced no such separation. Responses of the mothers to their infants' prosocial behavior were also analyzed. Subjects were twenty 1-year-old infants and their mothers. On the basis of the…

This paper presents an overview of the literature on mother-infant attachment behavior. Attachment is defined by Ainsworth as involving affection, discrimination, observable behavior, active participation by both parties, and reciprocal response. The process of attachment is seen by Stone, Smith, and Murphy as taking place in three stages over the…

In order to identify antecedents of infant's compliance with mothers' directions on how to solve four tasks (graded in terms of stressfulness to the infant), 194 high-risk mothers and their 2-year-old children were observed on videotape and assessed with a six-point rating scale. Data collected prenatally and postnatally at 3, 6, 12 and 18 months…

The impact of two levels of infant organization and marital satisfaction on parent-infant interaction patterns was investigated in 25 couples. It was predicted that (1) disorganized infants would have a negative impact on the parent-infant relationship, and that (2) parent-infant interaction with disorganized infants would be more negative among…